Leading Online Travel Agency debuts “first of its kind” inspirational travel app

CheapOair, a leading flights-focused, next generation concierge travel service consisting of a traditional travel agency with a digital front end, is excited to introduce its travel exploration app for the 4^th generation Apple TV. CheapOair is the first and only online travel agency to release an app on the Apple TV platform that inspires users to search and plan budget-friendly trips to unique destinations across the world, maintaining its role as an industry leader in technological innovation.

With the CheapOair Explore app, aspiring travelers can discover thousands of new and unique travel options from the comfort of their own living room. Within seconds, users can see where in the world they might be able to fly and for how much using specific travel dates and budget parameters, all entered through an easy-to-use interface. Personalized Wishlists allow customers to save desired itineraries for seamless booking on CheapOair.com or through their CheapOair mobile apps for iOS and Android.

The CheapOair Explore app is the perfect tool for travelers unsure of their next vacation destination to find somewhere interesting and unexpected that they could visit.  With a combination of vivid imagery and affordable prices, CheapOair hopes the CheapOair Explore app will introduce customers to a new method of destination discovery.

“Customers have expressed their desire for a travel planning tool that enables them to plan trips in real time alongside family and friends,” says Harsh Sood, CTO at Fareportal. “Now, thanks to CheapOair Explore, on Apple TV they can find places to visit that they never would have encountered otherwise.”

The CheapOair Explore app can be downloaded for free through the App Store on Apple TV or is also accessible on CheapOair.com.

 

About CheapOair

CheapOair is a flights-focused hybrid travel agency that enables consumers to book online, on mobile apps, by phone, or live chat. CheapOair (https://www.cheapoair.com, 1-646-738-4820) bridges the gap between an online and traditional travel agency with certified travel agents available to help find deals and offers to destinations worldwide on over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels, and 100s of car rentals. Partner airlines benefit from access to CheapOair’s broad customer base that books high yield international travel and add-on ancillaries at above the industry average. Follow CheapOair on Facebook and Twitter to learn how to travel the world for less.

Consumer financing options available in the fall to cardholders for thousands of airlines, hotels and auto rentals through online travel concierge

STAMFORD, Conn. & NEW YORK (July 21, 2016) — Travelers will soon have flexible financing options while also enjoying rewards through a co-branded Dual Card™ credit card program to be offered by Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF), a premier consumer financial services company with 80 years of retail heritage, and Fareportal, a high-tech, high-touch travel company powering the next generation of travel concierge.

Fareportal features a suite of brands, operating under CheapOair and OneTravel names, with a business model that bridges the gap between an online travel agency and a traditional travel agency by providing a convenient online booking capability as well as a 24/7 personalized trip booking experience.

Travelers around the world can find and book their perfect trip on Fareportal’s websites, mobile and tablet apps, and by calling one of hundreds of trained and certified travel agents in multiple countries and in multiple languages. Fareportal partners with more than 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels and hundreds of car agencies worldwide.

Qualified cardholders will have access to six months special financing on qualifying purchases, in addition to exclusive benefits travelers will value with a CheapOair or OneTravel co-branded Dual Card™ or private label credit card.

Synchrony Financial shares Fareportal’s passion for using innovation and technology to provide a seamless customer service experience,” said Tom Quindlen, executive vice president and CEO, Retail Card, Synchrony Financial. “Travelers looking for flexible financing options while also looking to maximize the versatility and value of their expenditures will be a great match for the Fareportal credit card.”

“Travelers are looking for great experiences and also for cheap flights,” said Michael Culhane, CFO of Fareportal. “Our new relationship with Synchrony Financial offers our customers outstanding financing options and an enhanced loyalty program. Additionally, a co-brand card will allow our customers to use their card anywhere in the world to earn rewards.”

About Fareportal

Fareportal is a high-tech, high-touch Travel Company that powers the next generation travel concierge. Utilizing its innovative technology and company owned and operated contact centers; Fareportal has forged strong industry partnerships providing access to over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels, and 100s of car rental companies that serve millions of customers every year. To learn more, visit http://www.fareportal.com/.

About Synchrony Financial

Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF) is one of the nation’s premier consumer financial services companies. Our roots in consumer finance trace back to 1932, and today we are the largest provider of private label credit cards in the United States based on purchase volume and receivables.* We provide a range of credit products through programs we have established with a diverse group of national and regional retailers, local merchants, manufacturers, buying groups, industry associations and healthcare service providers to help generate growth for our partners and offer financial flexibility to our customers. Through our partners’ over 350,000 locations across the United States and Canada, and their websites and mobile applications, we offer our customers a variety of credit products to finance the purchase of goods and services. Synchrony Financial (formerly GE Capital Retail Finance) offers private label and co-branded Dual Card™ credit cards, promotional financing and installment lending, loyalty programs and FDIC-insured savings products through Synchrony Bank. More information can be found at www.synchronyfinancial.com, facebook.com/SynchronyFinancial, www.linkedin.com/company/synchrony-financial and twitter.com/SYFNews.

^*Source: The Nilson Report (May 2016, Issue # 1087) – based on 2015 data.

©2016 Synchrony Bank/Synchrony Financial. All rights reserved.

 

 

NEW YORK, NY (June 20, 2016) – Fareportal and its subsidiary CheapOair have been honored with three of the biggest and most prestigious Stevie Awards from the American Business Awards program including the Gold Stevie for Fareportal’s Customer Service Department and two awards for CheapOair’s website and mobile app.

“We are extremely humbled by this peer recognition as the Stevie Awards are considered the world’s premier business awards,” noted Sam Jain, CEO of Fareportal.

The Stevies were created in 2002 to honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals worldwide.  The American Business Awards are open to all organizations operating in the U.S.A., and feature a wide variety of categories to recognize achievement in every facet of the workplace.

More than 3,400 nominations were submitted to this year’s American Business Awards for consideration in a wide range of categories, including New Product or Service of the Year, Most Innovative Company of the Year, Management Team of the Year, Best New Product or Service of the Year, Corporate Social Responsibility Program of the Year, and Startup of the Year, among others. More than 250 judges participated in the competition review.

Fareportal was presented with the Gold Stevie for the Customer Service Department of the Year. The Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service are open to all organizations worldwide, and recognize the achievements of sales, customer service, and call center professionals.  

Fareportal’s unique high-touch, hi-tech capabilities in the travel industry and their impressive contact center are vital to their success. Fareportal’s customer service department receives over 30,000 daily calls, manages over 450 emails and handles over 800 instant messages per day. In addition, the companies abandoned calls have decreased by 5% since 2014 due to protocols and procedures set in place so that these rates continue to decrease in the years to come. All of Fareportal’s customer service centers are operated in-house.

“Fareportal does not outsource,” said Ritesh Chaturbedi, General Manager, Global Operations for Fareportal, adding: “This ensures direct contact over customer service enabling our travel company to exceed customers’ expectations on a regular basis.”

CheapOAir has also been named a Silver Award winner in the category of Travel Apps. In October 2015, CheapOair launched its Predictive Home Screen on IOS Apps, a travel application offering simple navigation for customers who want to easily check their flight status, upgrade their trip or purchase extras. In addition, the application has interconnectivity with the Apple watch, allowing travelers to access the Predictive Home Screen right on their wrists, making CheapOair a true travel companion. Since the launch of the Predictive Home Screen, the app has been downloaded more than 1 million times and has received positive feedback for its design, interface and rankings.

“CheapOair uses cutting edge technology to make it effortless, affordable and enjoyable for our customers to book their perfect trip,” said Sam Jain, CEO of Fareportal, the parent company of CheapOair.

CheapOair also won the Bronze Stevie for its Consumer Friendly Homepage as one of the best home/welcome pages.

As a leading hybrid (online/traditional) travel agency, CheapOair strives to remain ahead of the curve with periodic enhancements to ensure that CheapOair.com is the primary go-to resource for consumers booking travel. Aside from daily updates, CheapOair.com provides a fast and simple booking path, features a live chat, allows consumers to check their flight status, conveniently provides CheapOAir’s customer service number on the homepage and provides customers with a quick and easy search/booking process with three simple clicks, compared to the standard industry protocol of the 5+ clicks.

“Once again, Fareportal’s company focus on technology enables CheapOair to provide a website, mobile apps and services that give our customers the ultimate service they expect,” said Jain.

2016 Stevie winners were celebrated and presented their awards during a gala event on Monday, June 20 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York.  The presentations were broadcast live via Livestream.

Past Stevie Award winners including Apple, Ford Motor Company, Procter & Gamble, Samsung, among many others. The Stevie® Award trophy is one of the world’s most coveted prizes.  Since 2002 the Gold Stevie Award has been conferred for achievement in business to organizations and individuals in more than 60 nations.

The name Stevie is taken from the name Stephen, which is derived from the Greek for “crowned.” The Gold (soon to be Grand) Stevie is approximately 16 inches tall, and is hand-cast and finished in 24-karat gold. The crystal pyramid held aloft by Stevie represents the hierarchy of human needs, a system often represented as a pyramid that was developed in the 1960s by psychologist Abraham Maslow, who observed that after their basic needs are met, human beings seek the esteem of their peers.

 

About The Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in seven programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, and the new Stevie Awards for Great Employers. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 10,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 60 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.StevieAwards.com.

 

About Fareportal

Fareportal is a high-tech, high-touch Travel Company that powers the next generation travel concierge. Utilizing its innovative technology and company owned and operated contact centers; Fareportal has forged strong industry partnerships providing access to over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels, and 100s of car rental companies that serve millions of customers every year. With a portfolio of consumer travel brands including CheapOair and OneTravel, Fareportal’s airline partners can benefit from access to a broad customer base that books high-yield international travel and add-on ancillaries. To learn more, visit www.Fareportal.com

 

About CheapOair

CheapOair is a next generation concierge travel agency (online/traditional) that enables consumers to book travel online, on its award winning mobile app, by phone or live chat. CheapOair bridges the gap between an online and traditional travel agency with certified agents available to help find deals and offers to destinations worldwide on over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels, and many car rental companies worldwide. Partner airlines benefit from access to CheapOair’s broad customer base that books high yield international travel and add-on ancillaries. Follow CheapOair on Facebook and Twitter to learn how to travel the world for less or go to www.cheapoair.com or call 1-646-738-4820.

Leading Online Travel Agency’s Data Shows Airfare is Down 10% Since Last Year

 

NEW YORK, June 15, 2016: CheapOair, a leading flights-focused hybrid online travel agency, announced today the top ten domestic and international destinations its consumers are traveling to for the 4^th of July holiday.  Data shows that travelers are taking advantage of lower airfare prices, which are expected to last throughout the peak summer travel season.

 

“Independence Day signifies that the height of the travel season is in full swing.  The airline industry is expecting a record-breaking 220 million passengers this year during the summer season – a 15% growth in number of air travelers since 2013, for the same three months of travel,” says Tom Spagnola, CheapOair’s Senior Vice President of Supplier Relations.  “Lower fuel prices and airline capacity growth both play a major role in the decreases in airfare, which results in these record breaking travel numbers.”

 

The largest price decrease seen between 2015 and 2016 for domestic destinations was reflected in bookings for Chicago, IL, showing a 19% overall decrease in airfare costs.  CheapOair’s data further shows that those who may be looking to pay the lowest price for their trip should consider Atlanta, GA, as a destination, as the average airfare costs $271.  Orlando, FL came in as the most popular destination for the holiday, with a 16% decrease in airfare, rounding out at $294.

 

CheapOair’s Top Domestic Destinations for July 4^th Holiday Travel

Destination	Average Roundtrip Airfare*	Price Decrease from 2015
Orlando, FL	$294	-16%
Los Angeles, CA	$371	-9%
Denver, CO	$332	-6%
Chicago, IL	$292	-19%
Las Vegas, NV	$337	-8%
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX	$291	0%
Fort Lauderdale, FL	$295	-7%
Seattle, WA	$399	-8%
New Orleans, LA	$387	-11%
Atlanta, GA	$271	-16%

 

For international destinations, Cancun was ranked as the number one destination for this time of year but saw a slight price increase of only 1%, adding on $6 from last year’s average price.  According to CheapOAir data, Belize had the largest decrease in airfare costs by far, dropping a total of 38% since last year, and Mexico City had the lowest airfare for a roundtrip, at a price of $396.

 

CheapOair’s Top International Destinations for July 4^th Holiday Travel

Destination	Average Roundtrip Airfare*	Price Decrease from 2015
Cancun, Mexico	$521	1%
San Juan, Puerto Rico	$458	-11%
Mexico City, Mexico	$396	-22%
San José del Cabo, Mexico	$566	38%
Barcelona, Spain	$1,172	-25%
Lima, Peru	$698	-21%
Grand Cayman Island	$538	7%
San José, Costa Rica	$471	-29%
Belize City, Belize	$496	-38%
Dublin, Ireland	$1,096	-8%

 

“Capacity growth causes competition between airlines, which drives cheaper prices for consumers.”  Spagnola adds.  “Although summer is peak travel season, consumers should take advantage of the deals becoming available before they miss out on some great travel opportunities.”

 

*The fares referenced are averages, based on bookings made beginning January 1^st, for travel anytime between June 26^th and July 11^th, 2016.

 

Travelers can sign up to receive daily travel deals to various destinations, including the top Independence Day Holiday getaways for 2016, by making a CheapOair profile at CheapOair.com.  For more information, please visit CheapOair.com, CheapOair.com/mobile, or check out CheapOair’s Miles Away blog for travel tips and trends.

 

About CheapOair

CheapOair is a flights-focused hybrid travel agency that enables consumers to book online, on mobile apps, by phone, or live chat.  CheapOair (http://www.cheapoair.com, 1-646-738-4820) bridges the gap between an online and traditional travel agency, with certified travel agents available to help find deals and offers to destinations worldwide on over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels, and 100s of car rentals. Partner airlines benefit from access to CheapOair’s broad customer base that books high yield international travel and add-on ancillaries at above the industry average.  Follow CheapOair on Facebook and Twitter to learn how to travel the world for less.